tengo un hermano
/tenɡo un eɾmano/from spelling rules
In Spanish, "I have one brother" is said as tengo un hermano.
The phrase tengo un hermano is used to state that you have one male sibling. The word tengo is used to mean "I have" when talking about relationships.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of tengo (I have), un (one/a) and hermano (brother).
Which one should you use?
The word un can mean both "a" and "one." If you want to emphasize the number 'one' specifically (as opposed to just saying 'I have a brother'), you can say tengo un solo hermano.
How does it change in a sentence?
In Spanish, the word un can mean both "a" and "one", so tengo un hermano can be translated as either "I have a brother" or "I have one brother".
How do you pronounce it?
/tenɡo un eɾmano/
Did you know?
- The word hermano shares an ancestral root with the English word 'germane', which refers to something being closely related or relevant.
- While hermano means 'brother', the word for 'sibling' is hermano o hermana, as Spanish lacks a single gender-neutral word for a sibling.
- In Spanish, hermano can be used as a friendly term of address for a male peer, similar to 'bro' in English, even if they share no biological relation.
Examples in context
- Tengo un hermano.I have one brother.This sentence shows the basic way to state you have one brother using tengo un hermano.Tatoeba #508421 by Shishir, translation #256071 by CK
- Yo tengo un hermano y dos hermanas.I have one brother and two sisters.This sentence demonstrates how to list one brother and two sisters using tengo un hermano.Tatoeba #1151457 by FiRez, translation #543688 by saasmath
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about their families at a cafe.
- Sofía¿Tienes hermanos o hermanas?Do you have brothers or sisters?
- AlejandroTengo un hermano, pero no tengo hermanas.I have one brother, but I don't have sisters.
- Sofía¡Qué bien! ¿Es mayor o menor que tú?That's nice! Is he older or younger than you?
- AlejandroÉl es mayor que yo.He is older than me.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hermano, un, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
